Cricket News: Rankings Boost for Afghanistan Spinner Ahead of T20 World Cup
On the eve of this year’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, Afghanistan’s ace spinner, Rashid Khan, has made a significant leap in the ICC Men’s T20I Bowler Rankings, re-entering the top 10.
Rashid’s ranking rose four places to tie for ninth, following his Player of the Series performance that led Afghanistan to a 2-1 series victory over Ireland.
Rashid Khan’s all-round brilliance helped Afghanistan level the #AFGvIRE T20I series 1-1
: @ACBofficials pic.twitter.com/3daRwNUO4p
The 25-year-old spinner, who was playing his first series since a back injury during last year’s ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, took a series-high eight wickets over the three matches, averaging 5.62.
Rashid, who first held the No.1 ranking for T20I bowlers at the start of 2018, recently slipped out of the top 10. However, he is determined to maintain his position in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup in the USA and the Caribbean in June.
Men’s T20I Bowler Rankings
Rashid’s Afghanistan teammate, Naveen-ul-Haq, climbed two places to 55th following his three wickets in the Ireland series. Meanwhile, Irish trio Josh Little, Mark Adair, and Barry McCarthy also improved their T20I bowler rankings, which are still led by England spinner Adil Rashid.
India’s Suryakumar Yadav continues to lead the rankings for T20I batters, with Afghanistan’s Mohammad Nabi moving back into the top 50 after scoring a series-high 90 runs against Ireland.
Men’s T20I Batter Rankings
Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh maintains his top spot in the T20I all-rounder rankings, with Ireland’s Gareth Delany making the biggest leap in this category, moving up four places to 18th after scoring 76 runs and taking a wicket against Afghanistan.
Men’s T20I All-Rounder Rankings
The latest ODI rankings for batters saw some movement following Sri Lanka’s series against Bangladesh. Pathum Nissanka of Sri Lanka entered the top 10 at eighth after a three-place rise.
Men’s ODI Batter Rankings
Nissanka scored a total of 151 runs in the series, which Bangladesh won 2-1. His teammate, Charith Asalanka, improved two spots to 14th after scoring 146 runs in three innings.
Bangladesh’s Mushfiqur Rahim, Najmul Hossain Shanto, and Towhid Hridoy all improved their rankings for ODI batters. Meanwhile, pacer Shoriful Islam made the biggest leap in the ODI bowler rankings, moving up 11 places to 24th after taking five wickets in the series.